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SENATE MUST REJECT TRUMP’S NOMINEES POMPEO AND HASPEL

By tweet on Tuesday, Trump announced disastrous national security shakeup:— fired Secretary of State Tillerson— replaced him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo— promoted CIA Deputy Director Gina Haspel to Director

While Tillerson was a terrible Secretary, Mike Pompeo, a Tea Party ex-Representative with out-of-the-mainstream views, will be worse:—opposes closing Guantanamo and supported water boarding— wants increased domestic surveillance— approves gutting Iran nuclear deal—prefers war to diplomacy—is rabidly anti-Muslim—broke promise to Senate to “speak truth to power” with Trump—was biggest recipient of Koch Brothers contributions when Congressperson

Gina Haspel’s baggage is even more negative:—ran CIA prison in Thailand that water boarded and tortured prisoners—ordered destruction of video evidence of these illegal actions

Both nominees reinforce, rather than temper Trump’s hawkish, autocratic tendencies and endorse reprehensible policies. Pompeo has also downplayed Russia’s attacks on our democracy, even when contradicted by CIA’s evidence.

Our Senators must do everything possible to derail these nominations—holding out for . . .

Competent and Ethical

Secretary of State and CIA Director

**ACTION 1: Call Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley**

SENATE SAMPLE SCRIPT for Senator Wyden:
“My name is [–] and I’m a constituent and voter from [city], Oregon [zip code]. I am calling to thank Senator Wydenfor opposing Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State and Gina Haspel for CIA Director. Since Secretary Tillerson seems to have been fired for standing up to Russia, Democrats must insist that before any Senate vote is scheduled, the administration demonstrate (1) the complete imposition of congressionally-mandated Russian sanctions and (2) the State Department’s disbursement of monies authorized by Congress to prevent Russian hacking. Thank you.”

SENATE SAMPLE SCRIPT for Senator Merkley:
“My name is [–] and I’m a constituent and voter from [city], Oregon [zip code]. I am calling to urge Senator Merkley to oppose Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State and Gina Haspel for CIA Director. Both nominees are unsuited for these positions because they reinforce, rather than temper Trump’s hawkish, autocratic tendencies and have endorsed reprehensible policies. Since Secretary Tillerson seems to have been fired for standing up to Russia, Democrats must insist, at a minimum, that before any Senate vote is scheduled, the administration demonstrate (1) the complete imposition of congressionally-mandated Russian sanctions and (2) the State Department’s disbursement of monies authorized by Congress to prevent Russian hacking. Thank you.”

**ACTION 2: Send this to your Friends and Family**

Share this post with friends and family, especially in red states.Urge them to tell their Senators to oppose Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State and Gina Haspel for CIA Director because they are unsuitable for these positions. Both nominees reinforce, rather than temper Trump’s hawkish, autocratic tendencies and have endorsed reprehensible policies. Additionally, since Secretary Tillerson seems to have been fired for standing up to Russia, they should tell their Senators to insist that before any Senate vote is scheduled, the administration demonstrate (1) the complete imposition of congressionally-mandated Russian sanctions and (2) the State Department’s disbursement of monies authorized by Congress to prevent Russian hacking.